insane comment following tornadoes in Oklahoma - Think Atheist2015-08-02T22:58:54Zhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/forum/topics/insane-comment-following-tornadoes-in-oklahoma-1?xg_source=activity&feed=yes&xn_auth=noIsn't it utterly pointless? …tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-09-13:1982180:Comment:13752812013-09-13T00:10:46.429Zmatt.clerkehttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/mattclerke
<blockquote><p><span>Isn't it utterly pointless? After all, the person is dead. He or she doesn't care.</span></p>
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<p><span>It gives some sense of closure to the people in attendance.... as you said, the dead person doesn't care. Why do you assign this effect to prayer without any evidence that it is prayer doing the work?</span></p>
<blockquote><p><span>Isn't it utterly pointless? After all, the person is dead. He or she doesn't care.</span></p>
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<p><span>It gives some sense of closure to the people in attendance.... as you said, the dead person doesn't care. Why do you assign this effect to prayer without any evidence that it is prayer doing the work?</span></p> At least we can eat the dead…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-09-12:1982180:Comment:13754122013-09-12T18:31:50.757ZHank Ronanhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/HankRonan
<p>At least we can eat the dead mackerel, so they're more useful than dead humans. Unless, of course, we develop a taste for Soylent Green.</p>
<p>At least we can eat the dead mackerel, so they're more useful than dead humans. Unless, of course, we develop a taste for Soylent Green.</p> Sorry, Hank, your link doesn'…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-07-18:1982180:Comment:13533672013-07-18T03:54:37.729Zarchaeopteryxhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/xn/detail/u_2gskiyna07rt3
<p>Sorry, Hank, your link doesn't work!</p>
<p>Sorry, Hank, your link doesn't work!</p> Or - just a thought here - it…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-07-18:1982180:Comment:13533642013-07-18T03:49:29.191Zarchaeopteryxhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/xn/detail/u_2gskiyna07rt3
<p>Or - just a thought here - it could all be bullshit --</p>
<p>Or - just a thought here - it could all be bullshit --</p> No, "Truthers" share conspira…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-07-18:1982180:Comment:13534912013-07-18T03:47:23.453ZHank Ronanhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/HankRonan
<p>No, <strong>"<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/rosiegray/the-911-truth-movement-wants-you-to-lnow-its-doi" target="_blank">Truthers</a></strong>"<strong> </strong>share conspiracy theories about the terrorist attacks on 09/11/01. They have a quite large following!</p>
<p>No, <strong>"<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/rosiegray/the-911-truth-movement-wants-you-to-lnow-its-doi" target="_blank">Truthers</a></strong>"<strong> </strong>share conspiracy theories about the terrorist attacks on 09/11/01. They have a quite large following!</p> Oh, that's a simple answer. …tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-07-18:1982180:Comment:13533572013-07-18T03:28:35.948ZHank Ronanhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/HankRonan
<p>Oh, that's a simple answer. </p>
<p>When you die, the god sits immediately in judgement to determine if you deserve <strong><em>Heaven</em></strong> because you believe <em><strong>on</strong></em> the name of <strong>Jay-EEE-zus</strong>, enough to qualify for that reward in most of the xtian cults, or <em><strong>H</strong><strong>ell</strong></em>, if you happen not to accept <strong>Jay-EEE-zus</strong> as your lord and savior. Praying for the dead person in those cults would seem…</p>
<p>Oh, that's a simple answer. </p>
<p>When you die, the god sits immediately in judgement to determine if you deserve <strong><em>Heaven</em></strong> because you believe <em><strong>on</strong></em> the name of <strong>Jay-EEE-zus</strong>, enough to qualify for that reward in most of the xtian cults, or <em><strong>H</strong><strong>ell</strong></em>, if you happen not to accept <strong>Jay-EEE-zus</strong> as your lord and savior. Praying for the dead person in those cults would seem futile, considering that the god has a <strong><em>Divine Plan</em></strong> and presumably where you go would be a part of the plan. Somewhat confused about the role of St. Peter, into whose bailiwick the <em><strong>Pearly Gates</strong> </em>fall, and whether he, as gatekeeper, is the one who actually judges you, or perhaps Googles your name on his <strong><em>Divine Plan</em></strong> <strong><em>iPad</em></strong><strong><em> </em>. . .</strong> </p>
<p>It's confusing!</p>
<p>Ok, back to the benefit of praying for the dead. In some cults, Catholic, for one, (my own former cult) there's an interim place called <strong><em>Purgatory</em>.</strong> That's kind of a demi-hell, not an eternal hell, where you go just for a bit of time to be <b><i>purged</i></b><i> </i>of your sins. An example comes to mind: as a teenager, I was walking down the street and spied a pretty girl. Lustful thoughts crept into my mind, involuntarily, and I got a boner. Ok, that's called a V<strong><em>enial</em></strong> sin and would get you, say, a bazillion years in <em><strong>Purgatory</strong></em> for the sin of lustful thoughts. So, after serving my time, I'll still be able to get to <strong><em>Heaven</em></strong>. However, being a typical hormonal youth, I take my boner home and masturbate, while enjoying these lustful thoughts! After an interminable delay of about eight seconds, I have an orgasm, which I thoroughly enjoy. Now <em><strong>that's</strong> </em>a <em><strong>Mortal</strong></em> <strong><em>Sin</em></strong>, and, sorry, now I'm gonna roast in <em><strong>Hell</strong></em> for all eternity. Actually it's several <em><strong>Mortal Sins;</strong></em><strong> </strong>first, the boner, since I'm now enjoying it, and the lustful thoughts, which are fun, and the jerking off itself, and the having an orgasm, and enjoying that! let's see, that's five <em><strong>Mortal Sins,</strong></em><strong> </strong>although one is sufficient for <em><strong>Eternal Damnation!</strong></em> </p>
<p>Or I could miss Mass on Sunday, also a <em><strong>Mortal</strong></em> <strong><em>Sin</em></strong>.</p>
<p>So the point of praying for my <b><i>Immortal</i> <em>Soul</em></b><b> </b>might be efficacious only in cults that feature <em><strong>Purgatory AND</strong></em> if I'm fortunate enough not to have earned <em><strong>Eternal Damnation</strong></em>.<em> </em>It is supposed to shorten my sentence, although how that jibes with the <strong><em>Divine Plan </em></strong>escapes me.</p>
<p>Oh, well the god works in <strong><em>Mysterious Ways</em>! </strong></p>
<p><span>Hope this clears things up!</span></p> @Bob - Who do you pray to in…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-07-17:1982180:Comment:13531002013-07-17T10:11:29.125ZSuzanne Olson-Hydehttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/Suzanne
<p>@Bob - Who do you pray to in time of a catastrophe and people die - what is the point after they are dead. Do you feel that god or jesus or mary or one of the myriad of saints, needs a reminder that they could have/should have intervened - or do you think it is a tad too late now, after they are as dead as a mackeral. What is the point of praying in these circumstances. What do you say?</p>
<p>@Bob - Who do you pray to in time of a catastrophe and people die - what is the point after they are dead. Do you feel that god or jesus or mary or one of the myriad of saints, needs a reminder that they could have/should have intervened - or do you think it is a tad too late now, after they are as dead as a mackeral. What is the point of praying in these circumstances. What do you say?</p> What you are perceiving as go…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-06-13:1982180:Comment:13265902013-06-13T18:23:29.770ZGallup's Mirrorhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/GallupsMirror
<blockquote><p>What you are perceiving as good people working together, seeing other people with different genetic material as being worthy of help and protection, that is the result of thousands of years of cultural development driven largely by religious ideas. </p>
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<p>So people work together and help outsiders because superstition came along and drove these ideas into human culture.</p>
<p>Wow Robert. That's extraordinary.</p>
<p>I presume, as usual, you have no evidence to…</p>
<blockquote><p>What you are perceiving as good people working together, seeing other people with different genetic material as being worthy of help and protection, that is the result of thousands of years of cultural development driven largely by religious ideas. </p>
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<p>So people work together and help outsiders because superstition came along and drove these ideas into human culture.</p>
<p>Wow Robert. That's extraordinary.</p>
<p>I presume, as usual, you have no evidence to back this claim, the latest in a long line of similar outlandish claims made in name of religion on these boards.</p>
<p>Altruism-- individual sacrifice and working together for the greater good-- predates culture (and thus superstition) in homo sapiens by at least 140,000 years. The first indications of <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.pnas.org/content/103/25/9381.full" target="_blank">modern culture in humanity appear 80,000 years ago</a>.</p>
<p>Evidently, religion is so powerful a driving force, it was driving people to help each other before it existed.</p>
<blockquote><p>It's an open question whether that culture can be continued in the absence of those religious ideas. That may or may not be possible. As we see in the world, the pressures toward competing tribalism are really quite strong.</p>
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<p>Name one ethical statement ever made or any action performed by a believer that could not have been stated or performed by a non-believer.</p>
<p>That answers your "open question".</p>
<p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/unreasonablefaith/2011/12/the-20-best-christopher-hitchens-quotes/#sthash.ALwp6l7L.dpuf" target="_blank">source</a></p> Care to discuss all of those…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-06-12:1982180:Comment:13263692013-06-12T23:54:50.763Zarchaeopteryxhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/xn/detail/u_2gskiyna07rt3
<p>Care to discuss all of those burned for wanting Bibles in a language other than Latin?</p>
<blockquote>"Amazing there were any Jews left for the Nazis"</blockquote>
<p>Couldn't afford to touch those - who would the kings who defended the Church borrow from?</p>
<p>Care to discuss all of those burned for wanting Bibles in a language other than Latin?</p>
<blockquote>"Amazing there were any Jews left for the Nazis"</blockquote>
<p>Couldn't afford to touch those - who would the kings who defended the Church borrow from?</p> Would that include the thousa…tag:www.thinkatheist.com,2013-06-12:1982180:Comment:13264442013-06-12T22:53:42.014ZDr. Bobhttp://www.thinkatheist.com/profile/ProfessorRobert
<blockquote><p>Would that include the thousand-year period known as the Dark Ages, during which time anyone with ideas different from those of the Church were killed</p>
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<p>Really? Anyone with different ideas was killed? For a full thousand years? Amazing there were any Jews left for the Nazis, let alone tens of millions of them.</p>
<p>I assume you're just baiting the old academic. You don't actually believe such nonsense, do you? </p>
<blockquote><p>Would that include the thousand-year period known as the Dark Ages, during which time anyone with ideas different from those of the Church were killed</p>
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<p>Really? Anyone with different ideas was killed? For a full thousand years? Amazing there were any Jews left for the Nazis, let alone tens of millions of them.</p>
<p>I assume you're just baiting the old academic. You don't actually believe such nonsense, do you? </p>